Will red light cameras get the green light in Jackson?

American Traffic Solutions compiled a mashup of the top worst red light fails.
USA TODAY NETWORK

Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba wants to again install red light cameras at high traffic intersections in the city. The mayor says the move would cut down on serious traffic accidents and fatalities, but critics say the cameras are a slippery slope.(Photo: Harold Gater)

In remarks to the City Council on Monday, the mayor pressed hard for a return to 2009, when the city had red light cameras at major intersections in the city.

"This is right outside our walls here," the mayor said, as the picture of an overturned vehicle at Pascagoula and State streets appeared on the council TV monitors.

"These images don't show the most gruesome nature of these things," Lumumba continued, " but we continue to have fatalities. Having cameras at intersections, there's an economic benefit, but this is really a public safety issue."

The mayor said he believes the installation of the cameras — which monitor the running of red lights — will reduce serious traffic accidents and fatalities in Jackson, the most populated city in the state with the highest number of traffic fatalities.

The issue is among one of the mayor's top legislative agenda items for the state Legislature in the upcoming year.

The mayor also cited another important factor: The Jackson Police Department is stretched thin, making the use of cameras a way to monitor busy traffic intersections without having to pull resources away from other policing concerns.

Chief Lee Vance, who favors cameras, said they will serve as a deterrent to reckless driving at major intersections if the public knows they're being recorded.

The cameras would record once triggered by the motion of a vehicle running a red light. The camera would capture the vehicle's license plate information and a ticket would be dispatched to the owner.

But while the mayor and chief say the cameras will reduce accidents and traffic fatalities in the city, others question the accuracy of red light cameras and are skeptical that cameras could become an economic crutch for the city to boost revenue.

A return to 2009

Having red light cameras would be a return to 2009 for the city, when Jackson had 16 cameras set up at eight intersections. JPD reported at the time that cameras reduced accidents at the intersections by an average of 68 percent.

Traffic cameras mounted at Pearl Street and State Street in Jackson in 2009 were designed to photograph vehicles running the red light at the intersection.(Photo: File photo/The Clarion-Ledger, The Clarion-Ledger)

During a one-month test period, the JPD sent out 7,300 warning letters to drivers informing them they had been caught by photo enforcement, according to a previous Clarion Ledger story.

Some 1,700 drivers got tickets, while an additional 2,000 tickets were being processed. The fines were $75 for the first two offenses, and then $150 for a third offense.

The cameras even caught law enforcement officers. Chief Deputy Dwayne Thomas said 150 law enforcement vehicles had been photographed running red lights. He said the violators were from every branch of law enforcement in the area, including state, city, county and university.

But House Bill 1568 put the kibosh on the use of red light cameras, mandating that any county or municipality "using automated recording equipment or system shall remove the equipment or system before Oct. 1, 2009."

Studies

The U.S. National Library of Medicine conducted 28 studies that measured the effect of red light cameras on crashes. All 28 found a lower number of crashes in the camera areas after implementation of the program.

"Measures aimed at reducing traffic speed are considered essential to preventing road injuries; the use of speed cameras is one such measure," the Library of Medicine concluded.

A 2007 USA Today article cited two studies that are often used in support of red light cameras.

In one, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found that violations in Philadelphia dropped by 36 percent after yellow lights were extended to give drivers more warning before a red light. After red light cameras were added, the study found that remaining violations dropped by 96 percent.

In another study, Old Dominion University researchers found that violations more than tripled one year after cameras were removed from four intersections in Virginia Beach.

Roadblocks

Critics of the use of red light cameras point to other factors.

One problem was the number of motorists who said they were not driving the targeted vehicle at the time. Almost 650 people contested the tickets during the short span the city was operating the cameras, according to a previous Clarion Ledger story. Some of the challengers said that somebody else was driving their vehicle. Others didn't know they were supposed to stop before turning right at the red light.

JPD Sgt. Roderick Holmes suggested positioning cameras to not just capture a picture of the vehicle's license plate, but also the driver.

A bigger issue was where the money went. In February 2008, Jackson signed a three-year deal with American Traffic Solutions, an Arizona-based company that provided the camera equipment and monitored the video.

During the camera use period, the city paid more than half of its revenue to American Traffic Solutions. City officials picked the group, although later said they were unaware using the company could mean $20,000 to $30,000 in lost revenue when compared with at least two other companies. American Traffic Solutions could not provide a projection of the amount of revenue the city could receive annually, Josh Weiss, a company spokesman said at the time.

Critics also say having cameras could lead city government to lean too heavily on revenue from red light violations. Some worry measures could be taken to trap motorists by reducing the amount of time a yellow light is displayed.

Between $500,000 to $600,000 in fines were collected at the time, Robert Walker, the then chief administrative officer for the city, told the Clarion Ledger.

Moving forward

In response to concerns, Lumumba said Gov. Phil Bryant offered some suggestions on moving forward on the red light camera issue when the two last visited.

The next step is for the mayor and city lobbyist Quincy Mukoro to sit down with city attorneys and the Police Department to get their input. They will present a final draft to the City Council, then try to find a legislative sponsor to support the authorization of red light cameras in the city.

Mukoro said he is hopeful the city can put together language in the legislation that makes camera use specific to Jackson and cities with a population of 100,000 residents or more, and also address other previous concerns. He said cameras are one way to deal with a hot topic issue for many Jackson residents.

"I think that if people are really concerned about crime, especially with the limited resources the department has, that you need to push for this," Mukoro said.